Excuse the long post guys but this topic and brands mentioned are constant discussions in my head. Specialized do themselves an injustice by shipping bikes with that stupid 2.1 fast track at the back. Mine lasted less then 10 rides before the sidewalk tore. I wasn't surprised though as I was going to change it anyway - much too slim at 2.1 and it had zero traction. I did however change the front tyre from new bike day also to the ground control but I put on the 2.3 GRID. Kicking myself for not checking what the standard rear tyre was and changing that also. Historically I've used your Vittoria combo exactly but the Cape Cobra versions, on both mine and my wife's bikes for years. Although both bikes were running older (narrower) rims to what's standard today and I don't believe that the narrower rim actually provided the best benefits of the larger volume tyre. If i look at the 2.3 volume tyre on my new bike compared to the 2.35 on my wife's bike, mine looks double the size.! And hence better planted on the trail... Mass of the tyre is not everything and I despise sidewall tears as they're a "ride-stopper" 90% of the time, hence the GRID or Cape Cobra essential versions. I used 2 plugs and ductape to get back to Broadacres from Bidon on that 2.1 fasttrack but I got there (remarkably). Also, Vittoria introduced their Graphene coating / compound a few years ago which was a game changer for the rolling resistance of their tyres, reducing this considerably and putting them in the top (or bottom by number) 10 (or less ? I think 6). For me, strong tyre wall, good grip and low rolling resistance are critical, more so than mass. So, this combo then all the way : * Front: Vittoria Barzo CC (2.35) * Rear: Vittoria Mezcal CC (2.25) HOWEVER, when I replaced my rear a month or so ago, I really didn't want different brand tyres Front / Rear and I'm VERY impressed with the 2.3 GC so I decided to try the wider fast track (2.3) with GRID and i must say that i am now very impressed with the combo that I have currently : * Front: Spez Ground Control (2.3) GRID * Rear: Spez Fast Trak (2.3) GRID Then we also have to consider cornering grip and climbing traction : The Mezcal at the rear is legendary, I climbed steep loose/ rocky single track where other tyres just spin out (obviously pressure now also comes into play). But the wider FT hasn't let me down yet on this kinda stuff also. Both combinations feel great on cornering but I'm now on wider rims with the Spez than a was with the Vittoria and newer bike geometry, etc. But I was happy with Vittoria before and am equally with Spez now. Going forward, if the tyres were priced the same, I'd probably stay with my Spez combo as its working great but the Vittoria are soo well priced (when on special) at about R600 a tyre that you simply cannot beat that combo. PS : I'm not a Maxxis fan at all - rode their tyres for about 10 years when there wasn't much else - they're OK but not great when looking at the overall picture. Hate Schwalbe - you show them a stone and they split.
